Benefit of the Doubt

Breaking the Idol of Certainty

by: Gregory A. Boyd

• Format

  E-Book

  ISBN

  9781441244543

  Pub. Date

  Sep 2013

  SRP

  $22.00

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About

Let your questions lead you to a stronger faith

Have you ever struggled with doubts about your faith? Has the Bible sometimes felt like a shaky foundation? Are you afraid to talk about it for fear of judgment from those who seem to have it all figured out?

Gregory Boyd knows how you feel. For him, faith has been anything but certain. In Benefit of the Doubt, he invites you to embrace a faith that doesn't strive for certainty but rather for commitment to Christ in the midst of uncertainty. Join him as he shares with poignant honesty his own inspirational journey, offering reassurance that you can experience a life-transforming relationship with Christ, even with unresolved questions about the Bible, theology, and ethics.

"Even when certainty is inaccessible, commitment remains an option. Greg Boyd is incapable of uninteresting thoughts. And this book is not merely thoughtful; it will be a tremendous help to doubters (and non-doubters) everywhere."--John Ortberg, author of Who Is This Man?; pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church

"Boyd has gotten used to exploring new territory, and in this book he dives into the issue of doubt and certainty--and recovers the lost treasure of Christlike humility and childlike wonder. Enjoy."--Shane Claiborne, author, activist, and lover of Jesus; www.thesimpleway.org

"Benefit of the Doubt is a deeply personal yet profoundly theological look at the important role of doubt in the Christian faith. Prepare to feel a little less crazy, a little less alone, and a lot more challenged to take the risk of following Jesus with your head and heart engaged. Boyd is the best sort of company for the journey."--Rachel Held Evans, blogger at www.rachelheldevans.com; author of Evolving in Monkey Town and A Year of Biblical Womanhood

"If you're a Christian who wrestles with doubt or you know someone who does, Benefit of the Doubt is one of the best books ever written on the subject."--Frank Viola, author of God's Favorite Place on Earth; www.frankviola.org

Gregory A. Boyd (PhD, Princeton Theological Seminary) is the senior pastor at Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the founder of ReKnew. He is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including Letters from a Skeptic, Is God to Blame?, Repenting of Religion, and Across the Spectrum.

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Endorsements

"Even when certainty is inaccessible, commitment remains an option. Greg Boyd is incapable of uninteresting thoughts. And this book is not merely thoughtful; it will be a tremendous help to doubters (and non-doubters) everywhere."

John Ortberg, author of Who Is This Man?, pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church

"Sometimes I feel like Greg Boyd is a 'brother-from-another-mother.' I try to read everything he writes. Sometimes I find him articulating things I haven't been able to put the words to. He's one of the great thinkers of the contemporary church. He's gotten used to exploring new territory, and in this book he dives into the issue of doubt and certainty--and recovers the lost treasure of Christ-like humility and childlike wonder. Enjoy."

Shane Claiborne, author, activist, and lover of Jesus, www.thesimpleway.com

"Benefit of the Doubt is a deeply personal yet profoundly theological look at the important role of doubt in the Christian faith. I found myself underlining entire chapters and tucking away favorite quotes in my journal. This is a book I suspect I will return to again and again. Prepare to feel a little less crazy, a little less alone, and a lot more challenged to take the risk of following Jesus with your head and heart engaged. Boyd is the best sort of company for the journey." 

Rachel Held Evans, blogger at rachelheldevans.com, author of Evolving in Monkey Town and A Year of Biblical Womanhood

"Prolific author and speaker Greg Boyd has crafted a tour de force that will help countless Christians who are struggling with their faith. Like a fine surgeon, Boyd takes dead aim at numerous misconceptions about faith that are in the drinking water of evangelical Christianity today. He then presents a strikingly beautiful and solidly biblical portrait of what believing faith looks like on the ground and how it's not incompatible with the struggle against doubt. If you're a Christian who wrestles with doubt or you know someone who does, Benefit of the Doubt is one of the best books ever written on the subject. It's an important work whose time has come."

Frank Viola, author of God's Favorite Place on Earth, frankviola.org

"If I was one of Jesus's first disciples, I would be doubting Thomas. My mind naturally questions everything and faith never feels simple. Benefit of the Doubt was written for me. Thank you Greg Boyd! If you ever wrestle with an inner skeptic (like me) or regularly interact with skeptics, this book offers hugely helpful insight into the benefits of doubt and how to leverage doubt in deepening our trust in God. I predict many people who read Benefit of the Doubt will find it profoundly life-changing."

Bruxy Cavey, teaching pastor, The Meeting House; author of The End of Religion

"As usual, Greg Boyd has hit a home run. Benefit of the Doubt is brutally honest, thought-provoking, and creative. If I could require all conservative Christians to read one book (besides the Bible!) it would be this one. It would liberate them from fear-based theology and spirituality. As good as the title is, it doesn't begin to describe this book that ranges far and wide over many issues of fear-based theology and liberating faith."

Roger E. Olson, Foy Valentine Professor of Christian Theology and Ethics, George W. Truett Theological Seminary

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